A Day of Discovery: 4th Annual Seattle Children’s Festival

In partnership with Seattle Center, Northwest Folklife’s Seattle Children’s Festival returns October 8, 2017 for the fourth annual year! Held at Seattle Center, this multi-cultural, multi-generational festival brings together families from across the Pacific Northwest to ‘Celebrate Our Big Neighborhood’ by bringing together local communities for a day of music, dance, workshops, and exploration of the Northwest region!

This festival was built from the ground-up to meet the needs of the children and families within our community. With the help of various community organizers, leaders, and cultural organizations, Northwest Folklife created this festival with the hope to foster community gathering, cross-cultural awareness and education, and the celebration of our diverse neighborhood.

(Photo by Erinn Hale)

With five stages, two discovery zones, a wide variety of workshops, and performers drawn from the many cultural communities that make up ‘Our Big Neighborhood’, you’ll have plenty to explore this year!

This festival is your chance to discover all of the incredible cultures within the Northwest, representing the Polynesian, Filipino, Iranian, Okinawan, Somali, and Indigenous cultures and everything in between.

New to the festival:

The Instrument Petting Zoo is a Discovery Zone that gives children the opportunity to play instruments from all around the world.

The STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics) Lab offers hands-on activities such as playing with electricity, learning how to become a radio DJ, exploring Enviroscapes and more.

There will be cooking workshops where families can learn how to make easy and healthy snacks such as 5 grain flatbread, fry bars and tabbouleh.

For families who need to take a little break from the festivities, we have a low sensory space and nursing area for rest and relaxation.

(Photo by Erinn Hale)

Performances at the 2017 Seattle Children’s Festival will involve music, dance, and storytelling traditions including Tahitian drum and dance, traditional Aztec dancing in full regalia, popular rock bands for kids like The Not-Its!, Duwamish storytelling, hip-hop and tap dance, and much more!

Get ready for a day of exploration, hands-on learning and celebration! The Seattle Children’s Festival will take place on Sunday, October 8 from 10 AM to 5 PM at the Seattle Center Fisher Pavilion and Armory. There is no admission fee, but donations are encouraged of $10 per person, $20 per family. Come ‘Celebrate Our Big Neighborhood’ together and learn from your neighbors. More information can be found via the the Children’s Festival website,Facebook event page or Northwest Folklife schedule site.

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